What does “crust of a rhinoceros” mean?












1














I've been reading Thank You, Jeeves by PG Wodehouse and couldn't understand what he meant by "The man must have the crust of a rhinoceros".



Is this British slang? Can somebody explain to me what this means?










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  • 1




    It probably means hide. The hide of a rhino is thick and hard to penetrate. If he has a think hide it means that he does not understand nuance at all (to put it mildly). To get through to him you have to hit him over the head with a two by four (to use another idiom) even to get his attention.
    – ab2
    Dec 9 at 22:12












  • @ab2 Thanks! That makes sense.
    – Daniel_V
    Dec 9 at 22:14
















1














I've been reading Thank You, Jeeves by PG Wodehouse and couldn't understand what he meant by "The man must have the crust of a rhinoceros".



Is this British slang? Can somebody explain to me what this means?










share|improve this question




















  • 1




    It probably means hide. The hide of a rhino is thick and hard to penetrate. If he has a think hide it means that he does not understand nuance at all (to put it mildly). To get through to him you have to hit him over the head with a two by four (to use another idiom) even to get his attention.
    – ab2
    Dec 9 at 22:12












  • @ab2 Thanks! That makes sense.
    – Daniel_V
    Dec 9 at 22:14














1












1








1







I've been reading Thank You, Jeeves by PG Wodehouse and couldn't understand what he meant by "The man must have the crust of a rhinoceros".



Is this British slang? Can somebody explain to me what this means?










share|improve this question















I've been reading Thank You, Jeeves by PG Wodehouse and couldn't understand what he meant by "The man must have the crust of a rhinoceros".



Is this British slang? Can somebody explain to me what this means?







british-english sentence-meaning






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edited Dec 10 at 1:50









Chappo

2,55441225




2,55441225










asked Dec 9 at 22:05









Daniel_V

83




83








  • 1




    It probably means hide. The hide of a rhino is thick and hard to penetrate. If he has a think hide it means that he does not understand nuance at all (to put it mildly). To get through to him you have to hit him over the head with a two by four (to use another idiom) even to get his attention.
    – ab2
    Dec 9 at 22:12












  • @ab2 Thanks! That makes sense.
    – Daniel_V
    Dec 9 at 22:14














  • 1




    It probably means hide. The hide of a rhino is thick and hard to penetrate. If he has a think hide it means that he does not understand nuance at all (to put it mildly). To get through to him you have to hit him over the head with a two by four (to use another idiom) even to get his attention.
    – ab2
    Dec 9 at 22:12












  • @ab2 Thanks! That makes sense.
    – Daniel_V
    Dec 9 at 22:14








1




1




It probably means hide. The hide of a rhino is thick and hard to penetrate. If he has a think hide it means that he does not understand nuance at all (to put it mildly). To get through to him you have to hit him over the head with a two by four (to use another idiom) even to get his attention.
– ab2
Dec 9 at 22:12






It probably means hide. The hide of a rhino is thick and hard to penetrate. If he has a think hide it means that he does not understand nuance at all (to put it mildly). To get through to him you have to hit him over the head with a two by four (to use another idiom) even to get his attention.
– ab2
Dec 9 at 22:12














@ab2 Thanks! That makes sense.
– Daniel_V
Dec 9 at 22:14




@ab2 Thanks! That makes sense.
– Daniel_V
Dec 9 at 22:14










1 Answer
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Crust in English slang means impertinence, according to Collins English Dictionary. You have to scroll quite far down to find this meaning.



YourDictionary.com gives the slang meaning as




5.Slang audacity; insolence; gall




In my comment, I said that crust of a rhino probably meant a thick hide that was impervious to subtlety or nuance; that one would have to hit him over the head with a two by four to even get his attention.



This is consistent with the dictionary definitions above, but with a slightly different emphasis. Someone with the crust of a rhino has a lot of gall, and is oblivious of how offensive he is, or simply does not give a damn what other people think.






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    1 Answer
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    active

    oldest

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    1 Answer
    1






    active

    oldest

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    active

    oldest

    votes






    active

    oldest

    votes









    4














    Crust in English slang means impertinence, according to Collins English Dictionary. You have to scroll quite far down to find this meaning.



    YourDictionary.com gives the slang meaning as




    5.Slang audacity; insolence; gall




    In my comment, I said that crust of a rhino probably meant a thick hide that was impervious to subtlety or nuance; that one would have to hit him over the head with a two by four to even get his attention.



    This is consistent with the dictionary definitions above, but with a slightly different emphasis. Someone with the crust of a rhino has a lot of gall, and is oblivious of how offensive he is, or simply does not give a damn what other people think.






    share|improve this answer


























      4














      Crust in English slang means impertinence, according to Collins English Dictionary. You have to scroll quite far down to find this meaning.



      YourDictionary.com gives the slang meaning as




      5.Slang audacity; insolence; gall




      In my comment, I said that crust of a rhino probably meant a thick hide that was impervious to subtlety or nuance; that one would have to hit him over the head with a two by four to even get his attention.



      This is consistent with the dictionary definitions above, but with a slightly different emphasis. Someone with the crust of a rhino has a lot of gall, and is oblivious of how offensive he is, or simply does not give a damn what other people think.






      share|improve this answer
























        4












        4








        4






        Crust in English slang means impertinence, according to Collins English Dictionary. You have to scroll quite far down to find this meaning.



        YourDictionary.com gives the slang meaning as




        5.Slang audacity; insolence; gall




        In my comment, I said that crust of a rhino probably meant a thick hide that was impervious to subtlety or nuance; that one would have to hit him over the head with a two by four to even get his attention.



        This is consistent with the dictionary definitions above, but with a slightly different emphasis. Someone with the crust of a rhino has a lot of gall, and is oblivious of how offensive he is, or simply does not give a damn what other people think.






        share|improve this answer












        Crust in English slang means impertinence, according to Collins English Dictionary. You have to scroll quite far down to find this meaning.



        YourDictionary.com gives the slang meaning as




        5.Slang audacity; insolence; gall




        In my comment, I said that crust of a rhino probably meant a thick hide that was impervious to subtlety or nuance; that one would have to hit him over the head with a two by four to even get his attention.



        This is consistent with the dictionary definitions above, but with a slightly different emphasis. Someone with the crust of a rhino has a lot of gall, and is oblivious of how offensive he is, or simply does not give a damn what other people think.







        share|improve this answer












        share|improve this answer



        share|improve this answer










        answered Dec 9 at 22:29









        ab2

        23.7k95993




        23.7k95993






























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